Most recently, he’s founded Western Sound, to create original podcasts for networks and brands.

With a strong background in content & technology startups, for-profit and public media, Ben Adair knows how to connect with audiences for maximum impact. His entrepreneurial experience brings a tight, results-oriented focus, while j-school education chops lend a patient, laid-back attitude that mentors your staff as he works alongside them.

We believe in an overarching audience-first perspective that drives ambitious goals. We take a problem-solving approach to new products and projects. We design realistic plans so that you and your teams can achieve them.

About Ben Adair

Ben Adair started his career in the alternative press before moving into radio via legendary Los Angeles community broadcaster KPFK. He got started reporting, editing and leading teams at American Public Media’s The Savvy Traveler.

In the mid-2000s, he created, hosted and produced Pacific Drift for Southern California Public Radio. Pacific Drift was a short-lived but influential arts, culture and documentary magazine that’s been cited by radio legends like Jad Abumrad, Lea Thau and Scott Carrier.

As managing editor for Weekend America from 2006-8, Adair brought editorial leadership and creative systems to a then-chaotically produced 2-hour, weekly newsmagazine show. He pioneered an integrated staffing plan that paired editors, reporters and producers from around the country to create more timely and more creative agenda-setting coverage. The results led the struggling show to create big audience spikes on many local stations, including becoming a “third tentpole” on many stations, like KPCC in Los Angeles.

In 2009, American Public Media tapped Adair to create a new environmental reporting vertical within its portfolio of national programs, including Marketplace, Speaking of Faith, American RadioWorks and others. As part of this effort, he pioneered a digital innovation lab housed within Marketplace to create new digital products aimed at general news consumers. The success of both led him to a senior editor position at Marketplace, where Adair led two multi-million dollar reporting initiatives aimed at sustainability / environmental coverage and decoding the new, global economy.

In 2013, alongside the Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Adair co-founded Reveal, a new show highlighting the world’s best investigative
reporting. Adair came up with the overarching concepts for the show and executive produced all three of the groundbreaking pilots, including the VA’s Opiate Overload, which won a 2013 Peabody Award for excellence in broadcasting. The success of the pilots was unprecedented in public radio history. It led the Center for Investigative Reporting to rebrand their entire organization as “Reveal.”

After handing leadership of Reveal back to CIR in mid-2014, Adair took over as interim managing editor at Marketplace, as the nation’s most popular business show went through a leadership transition. He oversaw all editorial operations for Marketplace, Marketplace Morning Report and Marketplace Weekend. Following that, he went on to advise numerous startups including Detour (mobile audio) and Super Deluxe (internet videos) on creating distinctive content while streamlining and scaling editorial operations.

Adair currently works with startups, podcasts, mainstream media outlets and other entities seeking to create unique user and audience experiences through enterprise journalism and original content initiatives.